New York Jets
Now that Ryan Fitzpatrick is officially a free agent, the Jets will surely be looking into the veteran market for a replacement. That’s only magnified with Geno Smith also expected not to return to Jersey.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing considering the Jets’ quarterback situation was absolutely atrocious in 2016. All said, the trio that actually took snaps under center threw 16 touchdowns compared to 25 interceptions. It was by far the worst quarterback situation in the NFL. That’s an amazing “accomplishment” considering the Cleveland Browns are still an NFL team (kinda).
With Christian Hackenberg on the roster, the Jets might look for more of a stop-gap option. That could come in the form of either Jay Cutler or Tony Romo. But it’s important to note that Hackenberg inspired so much confidence in the Jets’ front office that he didn’t take a snap under center with the rest of the team’s quarterbacks putting up horrendous performances. Think about that for a second.
Cousins to the Jets makes sense for a few different reasons. First off, this is a squad that won 10 games two seasons ago. It did so with Fitzpatrick playing tremendous football. There’s still a ton of talent here. Talent that Cousins himself could help tap.
Secondly, New York still boasts a solid receiver group in Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker. While both are a little long in the tooth and Marshall isn’t a guarantee to return, that’s a decent starting-off point for Cousins.
Finally, New York boasts the sixth overall pick in the upcoming draft and could potentially send someone like Sheldon Richardson to the Skins in a deal.
The only real sticking point is that the Jets are currently nearly $7 million over the cap. They are going to have to restructure multiple contracts and potentially release a few players to make this work. That list includes Marshall, Darrelle Revis, Nick Mangold and David Harris.